Gurugram school murder: Cops summoned for ‘framing' bus conductor
Gurugram: A special CBI court in Panchkula has summoned four Haryana Police officers accused of tampering with evidence and falsely implicating a school bus conductor in the 2017 murder of a seven-year-old boy inside a school toilet in Gurugram's Bhondsi.
The CBI court has directed all four accused — then DSP Birem Singh, inspector Narinder Singh Khatana, sub-inspector Shamsher Singh and executive sub-inspector Subhash Chand— to appear on July 15, officials aware of the matter said.
Eight years after the murder of the child, the CBI court has summoned the four accused officers following a petition filed by the victim's father, highlighting the prolonged delay in action against them and urging swift judicial intervention.
The four police officials face serious charges under IPC sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 166A (disobeying legal direction), 167 (framing incorrect document), 194 (fabricating evidence to procure conviction of a capital offence), 330 (torture to extort confession), and 506 (criminal intimidation).
The order was passed by Special Judicial Magistrate Anil Kumar Yadav.
The incident occurred on September 8, 2017, when the body of the Class II student—referred to as Prince to protect his identity— was discovered in a toilet in the school with his throat slit. Within hours, the Haryana Police arrested Ashok Kumar, a school bus conductor, claiming he had confessed to the crime. The arrest was met with massive public outrage, especially after glaring inconsistencies surfaced in the investigation. Days later, the probe was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which later apprehended a Class XI student from the same school—referred to as Bholu—for the murder.
Kumar was acquitted on February 28, 2018, by a special court. He recalled the trauma that continues to haunt him. 'I was tortured, beaten, hung upside down, and had my head submerged in water by the police just to force a confession,' he said. 'I was innocent, yet they paraded me before the media, ruined my reputation, and humiliated me in front of my family. Even now, I struggle to find work. I was framed to protect the real accused. I want to see all four officers behind bars,' he said.
Kumar had earlier rejected a compensation of ₹1 lakh offered by the Gurugram Police in May 2019, calling it 'an insult' to the trauma he and his family endured. 'That money cannot erase what I went through. It was never about money—it is about dignity and accountability,' he said.
The child's father, who moved the latest application leading to the summons, expressed satisfaction over the court's order. 'It is a step closer to truth and justice. Those who tried to bury the truth must face the law,' he said.
The court also dismissed the Haryana home department's claim that sanction was needed to prosecute the officers, stating that acts like fabricating evidence to implicate an innocent man cannot be passed off as 'official duty' under Section 197 of the CrPC. The summons will be served using email and WhatsApp, to ensure the accused appear before the court without further delay.
The court said there is incriminating material on the file collected by CBI and all the documents allegedly showing involvement of the conductor, have been fabricated with the intention of implicating him falsely. 'It becomes clear that these accused have misused their official position under the colour of their official duty and they have committed serious offences that is why CBI, the premier investigating agency of our country has filed a charge-sheet against these accused under section 120B read with section 166A, 167, 330 and 506 of IPC and substantive offences thereof,' read the order.
Meanwhile, the victim's counsel Sushil Tekriwal said, 'The most brutish, barbaric, cruel and diabolic acts commissioned by the four senior police officers are prima facie construed to be extra-judicial acts. They will now face sentence up to life if convicted. The pedestal of substantial justice can never be denied though delayed. The acts of police force was also gruesome to the extent that they all jointly and collectively and knowingly were not only fabricating the evidence, preparing false and incorrect documents with an intention and knowledge to falsely implicate an innocent as an accused without any evidence but were planting evidence for the said purpose, and writing case documents and case diaries at the subsequent stage and without physical presence but in back date corroborated by CDR locations.'
The development comes more than three years after the CBI filed its supplementary charge sheet on January 6, 2021, but the case remained stalled due to lack of prosecution sanction. The CBI had accused the officers of collusion and procedural misconduct during the initial investigation in 2017.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
19 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Special court in Assam orders framing of charges under POCSO, IPC against IPS officer
A special court in Assam has ordered the framing of charges under the POCSO Act and other sections of the IPC against IPS officer Gaurav Upadhyay in a six-year-old alleged sexual molestation case. The special judge, Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) court, Karbi Anglong, R. Lal, in the order, said that there were "two incidents of sexual assault on the survivor" by the accused, who was the superintendent of police of that district at the time of the incident. "The first assault occurred in the SP Bungalow at Diphu. The second assault took place in the hotel room where the survivor was staying with her mother and brother," it said. A copy of the order, which was passed on Wednesday, was made available to PTI on Saturday. The incident, involving a 14-year-old girl, took place in December 2019 and a police case was registered in January 2020. The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) had probed the case and submitted its charge-sheet against the IPS officer subsequently. An IPS officer of 2012 batch hailing from Uttar Pradesh, Upadhyay is currently the Additional Secretary of the State Transport Department; State Project Director, Assam Inland Water Transport Development Society; and Project Officer, Assam Integrated River Basin Management. The judge noted that as Upadhyay was the Karbi Anglong SP at the time of the incident, it occurred within the limits of his jurisdiction and control as a police officer, attracting clauses (i) and (l) of Section 9 of the POCSO Act and punishable under Section 10 of the same law. Use of "criminal force to kiss" the victim and "physical contact and advances" by touching her private parts, as stated specifically by the minor in her statement, leads to charges under Sections 354 and 354A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the order said. It also said that the case has remained at the pre-trial stage for several years, whereas judicial precedents direct trial courts to expedite such cases with the legislature also mandating a time-bound completion of trial in POCSO Act cases. "In the circumstances, charges under Section 10 of the POCSO Act and Sections 354, 354A of the IPC are hereby framed," the special judge ruled. Section 10 of the POCSO Act deals with the punishment for aggravated sexual assault, while Sections 354 and 354A of IPC are for offences related to assault or criminal force on a woman with the intent to outrage her modesty or sexual harassment. The special judge has fixed August 21 as the date for recording the accused's plea concerning the charge and necessary order.
NDTV
37 minutes ago
- NDTV
CBI Extradites Gujarat Man From UAE Accused In Rs 3.66 Crore Cheating Case
Ahmedabad: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), with assistance from INTERPOL and law enforcement authorities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has successfully secured the return of Upavan Pavan Jain, a key accused in a multi-crore cheating and forgery case registered in Gujarat. According to an official statement, Jain, who was wanted by Gujarat Police in connection with a high-value real estate fraud, was deported from Dubai and landed in India on June 20. He arrived at Ahmedabad International Airport, marking the culmination of a months-long international operation. The International Police Cooperation Unit (IPCU) of the CBI, in coordination with the National Central Bureau (NCB) in Abu Dhabi, tracked down Jain's location in the UAE and facilitated his return. The Red Notice subject was returned to India on June 20, following his deportation from Dubai. Jain is accused in a case registered at Adajan Police Station in Surat, Gujarat, on the charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating by impersonation, dishonestly inducing delivery of property, and forgery of valuable security. The CBI stated that Jain, who was working as a real estate agent at the time, hatched a criminal conspiracy with his co-accused to defraud a complainant by forging documents and impersonating property owners. He showed the victim four different properties and persuaded him to purchase them. Jain and his accomplices then impersonated the actual property owners using false identities and forged documents. They also opened bank accounts in the names of genuine property owners using fake identification documents. Through this elaborate scheme, the group succeeded in cheating the complainant out of a total sum of Rs 3,66,73,000. Based on a request from the Gujarat Police, a Red Notice was issued against Jain by INTERPOL on March 6, 2023. After his arrest in the UAE, the Government of India formally submitted an extradition request through the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). Red Notices issued by INTERPOL are disseminated to all law enforcement agencies worldwide to track and apprehend wanted fugitives. The CBI, functioning as the National Central Bureau for INTERPOL in India, works closely with domestic law enforcement through the BHARATPOL platform to utilise INTERPOL's global network. More than 100 wanted criminals have been returned to India in the last few years through coordination via INTERPOL channels, according to the official data.
Indian Express
44 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Solving Crime: A missing cab driver, a body in a quarry, and robbers on the run: How Karnataka cops solved a 2008 murder
It was a routine missing person report in the coastal Dakshina Kannada region of Karnataka. In less than a month, however, the case would unravel into a chilling murder case, where a man was brutally killed by strangers who just needed a vehicle to commit robberies. In November 2008, Ravi Devadiga, a travel company owner from Panja village, visited Mulki police station in Mangaluru. One of his drivers, Praveen Shetty, had gone missing with an Innova vehicle, he told the police. In his complaint, Devadiga mentioned that Praveen, who hailed from Theerthahalli in Shivamogga district, had only joined his firm as a driver two to three days ago. On November 9, Devadiga said, he left with the Innova but never returned. The vehicle was registered in the name of Shanthram Shetty, who had leased it to Devadiga's travel firm. 'Generally, in such cases, our first thought is that the cab driver would have fled with the car, as this is what usually happens,' a police officer who was part of the probe said. The police tried calling Praveen, but his phone was switched off. They then tried reaching out to his family in Theerthahalli. However, they learnt that he had not been home. The Mulki police registered a case under Section 381 (theft by a clerk or servant of property in the possession of their master or employer) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and began the probe. The police shared the vehicle number and Praveen's photo with other police stations and units and started to search for the missing driver. On November 12, three days after Praveen went missing, Lokesh Shetty, a subcontractor near a granite quarry, went to a nearby pond in Kulai village, 15 km away from Mulki, to wash his hands with three other labourers. Lokesh was shocked to see a dead body with its hands tied. He immediately alerted the Surathkal police, who visited the spot. Later, photos of the unidentified dead body were shared with other police stations. Police Inspector Parameshwar Ananth Hegde visited the spot with Devadiga, who identified the body as Praveen's. But the Innova was still missing. The police checked if Praveen had enemies or fights with anybody, but hit a dead end. Hegde, who is the current additional superintendent of police, Udupi district, recalls that the only piece of information the police had was the Innova number. 'It was a time when three to four robberies had been reported in the Dakshina Kannada district but had remained unsolved. Lorries and vehicles were being targeted at night, and people were being robbed. We shared the car registration number and photos with other police stations in the district, hoping against hope,' he said. On November 13, 2008, the Karkala police were checking vehicles when an Innova with the same registration number fled to evade inspection. The police failed to catch the vehicle at the time, but it was later found abandoned near Ujire, 55 km away from Karkala. Hegde says that he visited the Belthangady police station, where the car was seized. 'I had taken Shanthram Shetty, who confirmed that the vehicle belonged to him. It was a great lead for us. Once it was confirmed, we started our technical investigation,' he added. 'We zeroed in on the mobile numbers that were active near the checkpost. We used the same numbers and matched with those that were active at the places where the robberies were reported and at the granite quarry when the incident was reported,' he said. The police found that a couple of phone numbers were active in these locations. 'We found out that one of the numbers belonged to Safwan Hussain. I got the information that he was in Koppa in Chikkamagaluru district and caught him,' Hegde said. During interrogation, Safwan allegedly revealed the names of his associates, Mohammed Arif, Samshuddin and Moideen, who were arrested later. According to the police, they killed Praveen because they needed the Innova to commit robberies. 'It is sad that Safwan and his associates did not know anything about Praveen. They killed him just to use the car. They abducted Praveen and killed him by forcefully immersing him in stagnant water in the granite quarry. They then tied his dead body to a rock and threw it into the water. They installed a fake registration plate to commit the robberies,' Hegde added. The Mulki police collected evidence, including call detail records and CCTV footage, and filed a chargesheet before the sessions court on December 30, 2008. The accused were booked under IPC sections 363 (kidnapping), 392 (robbery), 302 (murder), and 201 (destruction of evidence). However, on March 15, 2013, the third additional district and sessions court in Mangaluru acquitted the accused. 'Yes, it was a big setback for us, but we were sure that these were the accused. We decided to challenge the judgment and appealed before the Karnataka High Court,' Hegde recalled. 'In Praveen Shetty's murder case, there were no eyewitnesses. But in the case of the robberies, the victims had seen them. They gave statements before the court and the mobile numbers that were used at the time of the robberies and the murder. The court considered these statements and circumstantial evidence,' Hegde said. On February 28, 2020, the Karnataka High Court convicted the accused to life imprisonment and imposed fines of Rs 1.13 lakh each. 'Having considered the material available on record, it is a fit case to come to a conclusion that the trial court did not consider the evidence available on record in right perspective and irresponsibly proceeded in a wrong footing in coming to the conclusion that the prosecution has not proved the case and the very appreciation of evidence available on record is nothing but proceeded in a prejudicial manner prejudging that the prosecution has not proved its case with an intention to acquit the accused which amounts to miscarriage of justice. Hence, we are of the opinion that the trial judge has committed an error in acquitting the accused and it requires interference of this court by setting aside the order of acquittal,' a bench of Justices S N Satyanarayana and H P Sandesh stated in the judgment. However, by then, Safwan, who was also involved in an attempt to murder case and other robberies, had fled from India. 'He is suspected to be in some Gulf country. We have issued a Red Corner Notice. He is still absconding,' a police officer said. Hegde was awarded the Union Home Minister's Medal for Excellence in Investigation in 2021 for solving the Praveen Shetty murder case.
